A dangerously ignored reality?

AI investors now brush aside worsening geopolitical headlines. Despite fading peace hopes in the Middle East, rising oil prices and renewed inflation fears, tech-heavy indices trade to record highs, driven once again by semiconductor and AI-linked stocks. The divergence between tech and the rest of the market is becoming increasingly extreme, with investors seemingly willing to ignore slowing growth signals and energy-driven inflation risks as long as the AI narrative remains alive. But with crude oil back above $100pb, inflation data due this week and valuations looking increasingly stretched, investors may be underestimating the risks building beneath the surface. Could this resilience in tech continue… or are markets entering the calm before the storm? Listen to find out more! Ipek Ozkardeskaya has begun her financial career in 2010 in the structured products desk of the Swiss Banque Cantonale Vaudoise. She worked at HSBC Private Bank in Geneva in relation to high and ultra-high net worth clients. In 2012, she started as FX Strategist at Swissquote Bank. She worked as a Senior Market Analyst in London Capital Group in London and in Shanghai. She returned to Swissquote Bank as Senior Analyst in 2020, and launched her own website ipekScope.com in 2025.